ESPN show a hit: ﻿The July 1 pro boxing card at Freeman Coliseum was termed a success by regional promoter Lester Bedford.

The six-bout Top Rank card, half of which was televised on ESPN2's “Friday Night Fights,” was highlighted by the induction of the first class of the San Antonio Boxing Hall of Fame.

“It was terrific,” Bedford said. “I was happy to get the hall of fame started. It made it all worthwhile to see what it meant to everybody.”

Bedford said he was pleased with the competitiveness of the bouts and the reaction of the crowd, especially during a main event — Sebastian Lujan vs. Mark Melligen — in which neither fighter was from San Antonio.

The only negative, Bedford said, was the online voucher plan offering free tickets. He called his concept “too confusing.”

Bedford put the crowd at 3,700, about two-thirds of which were the result of the ticket giveaway.

“ESPN gave us a little extra money for marketing,” he said, making the giveaway possible.

Straight shots

Hatton calls it quits: ﻿Former junior welterweight world champion Ricky Hatton, who had not fought since suffering a brutal second-round knockout loss to Manny Pacquiao two years ago, formally announced his retirement this past week.

James Cantu (7-0, 4 KOs) was scheduled to take on fellow San Antonian Steven Hall (3-2, 3 KOs) in the main event in a rematch of their 2007 Golden Gloves showdown. But local promoter Gabriel Carlin announced Saturday that Hall pulled out of the fight because of an injured knee.

“I was training for him and his style,” Cantu said. “But these things happen in boxing.”